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Wayne State University Athletics

Freddy Johnson
Freddy Johnson had a team-high 15 points.
67
Winner Saginaw Valley SVSU-M 8-3, 3-1 GLIAC
55
Wayne State WSU-M 2-5, 1-3 GLIAC
Winner
Saginaw Valley SVSU-M
8-3, 3-1 GLIAC
67
Final
55
Wayne State WSU-M
2-5, 1-3 GLIAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Saginaw Valley SVSU-M 25 42 67
Wayne State WSU-M 28 27 55

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Depleted Men's Basketball Roster Battles Tough In Loss To SVSU

Johnson and Robinson combine for 26 points.

DETROIT -- The Wayne State University men's basketball squad (2-5 overall, 1-3 GLIAC), despite playing without four starters due to GLIAC COVID protocols, led visiting Saginaw Valley State University (8-3 overall, 3-1 GLIAC) 48-47 with just over seven minutes remaining, but a nearly five minute scoreless drought was too much to overcome in a 67-55 setback.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
The first half saw four lead changes with neither team leading by more than points.

WSU's first nine points came via three-point range shots by junior Kylin Grant (Detroit, Mich. / Renaissance), freshman Freddy Johnson (Saginaw, Mich. / Arthur Hill) and Grant again, which gave the Warriors a 9-6 advantage.  A 7-2 run by the Cardinals put the visitors in front 13-11 as Tyler Witz scored the first four points of the spurt.

Wayne State grabbed a 14-13 led on a driving lay-up by sophomore Mike Robinson (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Ann Arbor Huron) just over nine minutes into the contest.  However, Witz responded with six straight points giving the guests a 19-14 lead three minutes later.

WSU trailed 21-16 after another bucket by Witz, which gave him 14 points in the first 13-plus minutes.  An offensive rebound and put-back by redshirt sophomore Cadin Augustine (Ypsilanti, Mich.) ignited a 10-0 run by the Warriors.  Johnson grabbed an offensive rebound and drained a baseline jumper, before freshman David Hughes (Southfield, Mich. / Detroit Edison Public School Academy) made two free throws putting Wayne State ahead 22-21.

Following the last media timeout of the first half, senior LJ DeWolf (Ypsilanti, Mich. / Ann Arbor Huron) connected from long range, and Hughes split a pair from the charity stripe.  Four straight SVSU points preceded a Robinson jumper giving WSU a 28-25 lead at intermission.

Second Half
Five more lead changes occurred in the second half.  Prior to the back-and-forth, the Warriors built a couple of nine point leads (34-25 and 36-27) as Johnson and redshirt junior Tyree Martin (Chicago, Ill. / Currie) each scored four points in the first 3:05 after halftime.

A 13-3 run by the Cardinals over a span of 4:45 gave the visitors a 40-39 edge on a jumper by Delano Smith.  Witz and Smith each contributed four points during the Saginaw Valley rally.

A triple by DeWolf, and a jumper by Hughes gave the Warriors a 44-40 lead with just over 10:30 remaining.

SVSU tallied the next seven points with four points by Maurice Barnett and a three-pointer by James Toohey.

Hughes and Martin scored on back-to-back Warrior possessions to grab a 48-47 lead.

However, Wayne State would not score for the next 4:49 as the Cardinals responded with a 14-0 run keyed by six points from Smith.  During the drought, WSU was just 0-for-2 from the floor, but had five turnovers.

A triple by Robinson with 2:22 left cut the deficit to 10 (61-51), and on the ensuing WSU possession Robinson had an offensive rebound and put-back making it an eight-point game, but SVSU out-scored Wayne State 6-2 over the final 100 seconds.

TEAM STATS
Wayne State shot 37 percent (22-of-60) from the floor, while limiting SVSU to 35 percent (24-of-68).  WSU was 7-of-20 (35 percent) from beyond the arc, with the Cardinals making just 2-of-18 (11 percent) from three-point range. The Warriors did not shoot a free throw in the second half and finished 4-of-6 (67 percent) from the charity stripe.  Meanwhile, Saginaw Valley was 12-of-13 on its foul shots in the final 20 minutes to finish 17-of-21 (81 percent).  SVSU had a 45-42 edge in rebounding, along with a decisive 38-20 advantage in scoring in the paint.

LEADING THE WARRIORS
Johnson, in his first action since the Michigan exhibition contest, tallied a team-high 15 points, along with a team-best three assists in nearly 36 minutes.  Robinson nearly had a double-double with 11 points and nine rebounds, while Hughes grabbed a game-high 11 boards.

LEADING THE CARDINALS
Witz scored a game-high 18 points, and tied for the team lead in rebounds with eight, along with Tre Garrett.  Smith chipped in with 16 points.

UP NEXT
Wayne State is scheduled to play in the U.S. Virgin Islands Basketball Classic on Dec. 31st and Jan. 1st in St. Thomas.



 
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